Python Eats Crocodile – Tales of Big Snake Eating

Recently, dramatic photos of an Olive Python, Liasis olivaceus, swallowing an Australian Freshwater Crocodile, Crocodylus johnstoni, have been much in the news. A very interesting story, no doubt, but actually a 3-4 foot long croc is well within the size range of prey taken by large pythons. In past articles I’ve mentioned some of the astonishing snake meals I’ve been witness to (please see articles linked below). One, a 60 pound White-tailed Deer taken by a huge Green Anaconda in Venezuela, would be hard for me “to swallow” (sorry!) had I not been awakened by the snake disgorging it below my hammock in the wee hours! A 5-foot-long Spectacled Caiman grabbed by another took 6+ hours to subdue. I’ve also searched my notes for feeding accounts recorded by Messrs. Ditmars, Pope, Greene, Kauffeld and other notables, and thought I’d take this opportunity to share them with my fellow snake enthusiasts…Enjoy!

Following are some of the more memorable meals that I’ve witnessed or read about. Please see the linked articles, or post below, for further information, and be sure to let me know of your own experiences.

Big Anaconda Meals I have Witnessed

The Green Anaconda I mentioned above was captured as part of a study on their natural history in the western llanos region of Venezuela. The snake, which measured nearly 17 feet long, was transported to our research station for tagging. During the early AM, it disgorged the deer, which had been recently consumed. The Anaconda pictured in this article was the largest I came across, measuring just over 17 feet long and weighing in at 215 pounds; this seems to be about their maximum size in that habitat (seasonally-flooded grasslands), but larger ones are to be found in forested rivers. The blood on my hand is courtesy of one of her teeth, which remains imbedded in my wrist as a souvenir…

Uploaded to Wikipedia Commons by Lori Oberhofer, National Park Servic

Other notable Green Anaconda meals include a 5 foot-long Spectacled Caiman, Caiman crocodilus (witnessed by a co-worker at the same site; photo to right is of an American Alligator turning the tables on a Burmese Python in Florida)and a 10 pound Red-Footed Tortoise, Geochelone carbonaria (unfortunately, an exhibit-mate at the Bronx Zoo, long ago!). I and fellow Anaconda-chasers also called to a site where one was said to be swallowing a large Savanna Side-Necked Turtle, Podocnemis unifilis. The 14-15 foot long snake had given up or been outwitted by the time I arrived, but she bore long, narrow wounds along the neck – the result, perhaps, of trying to swallow the ill-advised meal. This snake later died, apparently of an infection.

Size isn’t the only means by which Green Anacondas have managed to surprise me. Pigeon-sized birds known as Jacanas and other small species were commonly taken by snakes measuring 12-15 feet in length. We also recorded fish and other Anacondas as food items – not all that surprising, but not often documented. Capybaras were often hunted as well; these rodent giants were also favored by Pumas – a co-worker saw one catch a capybara in broad daylight.

Despite their seemingly-unrefined palates, captive Anacondas can be very picky. Ducks are the old zookeeper’s standby for reluctant feeders, but one Anaconda under my care would take only Muskrats, while another relished free-ranging Norway Rats but refused lab-raised rats of the same species.

Legendary zoo-man Carl Hagenbeck reported that a 25 foot long Reticulated Python residing at the Hamburg Zoo consumed a 71 pound Ibex and two domestic goats of 28 and 39 pounds, for a total of 138 pounds of food within a few days! In the “small but surprising” meal category is a Siamese cat that was eaten – bells, collar and all – inside the palace of a former king of Siam (modern-day Thailand)!

Uploaded to Wikipedia Commons by Greg Hume

King Cobra makes a Meal of its Mate

The world’s largest venomous snake, the King Cobra, favors other snakes above all other foods, and seems not to have as wide a jaw-gape as do similarly-sized individuals of other species (given their alertness and speed, I avoided working close enough to them to check, and am happy to speculate!).

But that does not limit their capabilities in all respects. During a breeding attempt at the Bronx Zoo (well, we considered it a breeding attempt, the snakes obviously had other opinions!), a 12-13 foot male consumed a 10-11 foot female. We had caged them side-by-side for weeks prior, and the male was well-fed, but to no avail. Even the deer-eating Anaconda did not appear quite as stuffed as that male King Cobra!

Uploaded to Wikipedia Commons by Alex Griffiths

The Largest of all Snake Meals?

The title-holder among giant meal-eaters may well be an African Rock Python that downed a 130-pound Impala (South Africa, 1955). You can read more about this and similar observations in one of my favorite books, Clifford Pope’s classic The Giant Snakes (1961, A. Knopf, NY). Even by giant constrictor standards, African Rock Pythons seem unusually well-adapted to taking large meals. Unfortunately, these snakes have consumed people within their native range, and captives have caused human fatalities here in the USA.

Other Snakes

Harry Greene’s wonderful book Snakes, the Evolution of Mystery in Nature, holds several accounts of large and unusual meals taken by snakes of other species. As I recall, some prey items neared and even exceeded the mass of the snakes that consumed them! Don’t miss this book…and please be sure to post your own observations below.

One comment

Frank…you are so cool,,,I havn’t seen anything that extreme that you have witnessed,,but one day on the lake I was raised I saw a 15 lb. walleye dead on shore with a dead 18 ” catfish in its mouth, the spikes on the catfish pectorals jammed in the corners of the walleyes mouth. A scene I’ll never forgot…ted

About Frank Indiviglio

Being born with a deep interest in animals might seem unfortunate for a native Bronxite , but my family encouraged my interest and the menagerie that sprung from it. Jobs with pet stores and importers had me caring for a fantastic assortment of reptiles and amphibians. After a detour as a lawyer, I was hired as a Bronx Zoo animal keeper and was soon caring for gharials, goliath frogs, king cobras and everything in-between. Research has taken me in pursuit of anacondas, Orinoco crocodiles and other animals in locales ranging from Venezuela’s llanos to Tortuguero’s beaches. Now, after 20+ years with the Bronx Zoo, I am a consultant for several zoos and museums. I have spent time in Japan, and often exchange ideas with zoologists there. I have written books on salamanders, geckos and other “herps”, discussed reptile-keeping on television and presented papers at conferences. A Master’s Degree in biology has led to teaching opportunities. My work puts me in contact with thousands of hobbyists keeping an array of pets. Without fail, I have learned much from them and hope, dear readers, that you will be generous in sharing your thoughts on this blog and web site. For a complete biography of my experience click here.

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